Elirea Bornman

Relative deprivation in contemporary South Africa.

The relationship between relative deprivation, ethnic identification, and racial attitudes was investigated in random samples of 460 Whites and 466 Blacks on the eve of a new political dispensation in South Africa. Measurements of relative deprivation were obtained with regard to the social, financial, political, and work situation. Regression analyses indicated that the strongest predictors of White attitudes toward Blacks were work-related deprivation and ethnic identification. Other predictors were gender and educational qualifications. Political and social relative deprivation, attitudes toward the in-group, income, and gender influenced Black attitudes toward Whites. The results of the study are explained against the background of sociopolitical and economic changes in South Africa.

Self-image and Ethnic Identification in South Africa

This study examined the relationship between self-image and ethnic identification among 3 South African groups. Participants included random samples of 347 Afrikaans-speaking Whites, 113 English-speaking Whites, and 466 Blacks in urban Gauteng. Positive and negative self-image were extracted using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (M. Rosenberg, 1965). Afrikaans-speaking Whites had the most positive self-image and Blacks the most negative self-image. A positive self-image was correlated with stronger ethnic identification among Afrikaans-speaking Whites. The opposite was true for Blacks. This relationship was insignificant among English-speaking Whites. Ambivalence toward ingroup identity was persistently correlated with self-image for all groups.

Core symbols in South African intercultural friendships

Abstract Focus group discussions among Afrikaner, British, Coloured, Asian and Black groups in South Africa were held in which respondents discussed intercultural friendships. Groups were asked to suggest core characteristics for friendships, to describe instances in which they managed cultural differences, to describe rule violations which would necessitate the termination of the friendship, and to make recommendations for appropriate and satisfying friendship conduct to persons from different cultural groups. Afrikaner discourse about intercultural friendship centered upon themes of Pride in Cultural Identity and Decorum, British themes were Individualism and a Future Orientation the themes for Coloured respondents were Flexibility and Relationship Orientation, Asian themes were Responsibility for Actions and Openness, while Black themes were Honor, and Compassion. The core symbols were interpreted in the political and social context of transition in 1992. A positive relationship between level of sociocultural power in South Africa and the intensity and salience of the ethnic identity emerged in that groups with greater sociocultural power expressed the most negative ascriptions about members of other groups, as well as expressed preferences for their own group or individual norms for the intercultural friendship. While dialectic tensions in group and individual orientations were evident in the discourse of friends from all groups, group members with higher sociocultural power criticized Blacks as looking too much toward the past instead of the future.

Information society and digital divide in South Africa: results of longitudinal surveys

Integration into the information society implies that information plays an increasingly important role in all sectors of society and holds distinct social and economic benefits. Discourses on the information society are, however, also associated with the digital divide and inequalities in access to and use of information and communication technologies (ICTs). Within sub-Saharan Africa, South Africa is often regarded as one of the most information-integrated societies due to widespread mobile phone ownership, among other things. However, while ICT access has been emphasized, research also points to the role of demographic, socio-economic and cultural factors such as ethnicity, income, education and gender. This article discusses the results of questionnaire surveys conducted by Afrobarometer among probability South African samples in 2008 and 2011. The results indicate that individual Internet use and mobile Internet access were lower than estimated in the literature. Furthermore, gender gaps, as well as considerable gaps between population groups and educational levels, were found in Internet and computer use, mobile ownership and access to mobile Internet and accessing news via the Internet. Conclusions regarding strategies for bridging the digital divide and integrating South Africa into the information society are discussed.

International communication: shifting paradigms, theories and foci of interest

Abstract This article aims to be a stock-taking exercise of the development of paradigms and foci of interest, in attempts to theorise the vast developments and far-reaching changes as well as the impact and effects of global communication in the world of today. Attention is firstly given to the current nature, impact and implications of global communication in the first decade of the 21st century, as well as to a shift in emphases in the (sub)discipline of international communication. A critical overview is then given of discourses on the free flow of information, modernisation theory, dependency theory, the structural theory of imperialism, world system theory, hegemony, political economy, critical theory, the public sphere, cultural studies, the information society and globalisation. Since many of these paradigms have been borrowed or taken over from media studies, international relations or other (sub)disciplines, attention is given specifically to their application in theorising international communication. The article concludes with a critical overview of the current ‘state of the art’ with regard to the body of theory in international communication.

Ethnolinguistic vitality under a new political dispensation in South Africa.

The dimensions and group expectations of ethnolinguistic vitality in the new South Africa were investigated in random samples of 460 Whites (347 Afrikaans-speaking; 113 English-speaking) and 466 Blacks. By means of a factor analysis, 5 factors were distinguished: Institutional Support, Group Status and Power, Maintenance of Identity, Maintenance of Symbols, and Threat to Identity. The expectations of groups differed significantly in regard to the dimensions of ethnolinguistic vitality. Relationships between these dimensions and other variables and the implications of the findings were discussed against the background of sociopolitical and economic changes in South Africa.

Predictors of Ethnic Identification in a Transitionary South Africa

This study involves a critical analysis of the implications of the assumptions of social identity theory and related theories for ethnic identification and intergroup relations during the period of socio-political change in South Africa. Using data from a survey conducted on the eve of the new dispensation, the authors investigated the factors that influence ethnic identification in three groups. Two random samples of 460 whites (347 Afrikaans speaking and 113 English speaking) and 466 blacks in urban Gauteng were involved. Although the validity of some assumptions of social identity theory regarding groups in real life have been confirmed, the findings also point to the need for more complex models that take into consideration the interplay between personal, developmental, social, economic and political factors.

Struggles of identity in the age of globalisation

Abstract This article explores the intricate interrelationships between discourses on, struggles of, identity and the multiple processes associated with increasing globalisation in the modern age. Globalisation is often exclusively associated with worldwide economic integration and the emergence of a borderless global market. However, globalisation also involves sweeping changes on the social, cultural and political terrains. Globalisation furthermore entails apparently contradictory processes of, among other things, homogenisation and universalisation on the one hand and localisation and differensiation on the other. Various analysts point out that the often contradictory processes of globalisation have led to wide-ranging changes in the processes of identity formation that have, in turn, resulted not only in a flourishing of discourses on identity, but also in struggles of identity involving various minority and marginalised groups. Apart from exploring various definitions of identity, discourses and struggles of identity are discussed on five levels, namely the individual, subnational, national, supranational and global levels. Attention is given to the role of the media, information and communication technologies in these struggles and the implications for policy-making within the media and communications sector. The far-reaching implications for Africa, South Africa in particular, are also considered.

Factors Influencing Ethnic Attitudes in South African Work Situations

Abstract The relationship between ethnic attitudes and factors associated with work-related intergroup contact in South Africa was investigated. Variables included were subjective work status, the behavior of supervisors, the ethnic group membership of supervisors, the largest population group at place of work, and competition versus cooperation. Two random samples of working Afrikaners and Coloureds were drawn from the Cape metropolitan area. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to identify significant predictors of attitudes. The attitudes of Afrikaners employed by organizations in which most of the employees were English-speaking were significantly more positive than those of Afrikaners in organizations in which most employees were Afrikaans-speaking. The opposite was true for organizations in which most of the employees were Black, Asian, or of another group. Significant predictors for Coloureds were subjective status, considerative supervisor behavior, cooperation versus competition between ...

Language Choices and Identity in Higher Education: Afrikaans-speaking Students at Unisa

Worldwide globalisation has led to the anglicisation of higher education. This is also the case in South Africa since the advent of a new dispensation. Whereas theorising and research on language issues in higher education focuses predominantly on instrumental functions of language, this study investigates the symbolic functions of language as an identity marker. A survey was conducted among 2794 Afrikaans-speaking students at the University of South Africa (Unisa). Students who studied in Afrikaans identified more with South Africa and their ethnic and racial groups than Afrikaans students who studied in English. They also identified more with all categories related to the South African and African contexts. Furthermore, these students identified significantly more with the institution and felt more at home at the university. Implications for the role of universities in processes of social identification and the potential impact of language policies and concomitant language choices are discussed.